Strong positions of consonants. What sounds have strong and weak positions? §9

Consonants change in the flow of speech. Their change is caused by the position of the consonant in the word.

All consonants before vowels occupy a strong position. It is in these phonetic conditions that the largest number of consonant sounds differ: house - tom - scrap - com - catfish - year - cat - move, etc. In strong positions, consonants can change their quality under the influence of subsequent vowels. Thus, labial vowels rounden (labialize) the preceding consonant: in the words there and that, the consonant [t] is not pronounced the same way (in the second word it is rounded). The consonants before the vowel [a] differ most completely and change least of all: there - dam, small - crumpled, garden - glad - above, etc. The position before the vowel [a] is called an absolutely strong position.

In addition to the absolutely strong position, there are strong positions for individual consonant categories.

Strong positions for noisy consonants, paired in voicedness-voicelessness, are: 1) position in front of all vowels - itching - court, heat - ball, guest - bone, etc.; 2) position before sonorant consonants and before consonants [в], [в’] - rude - croup, evil - layer, bend (verb) - whip, beast - check (verb), etc.

Noisy consonants occupy a weak position in terms of voicedness-voicelessness: 1) at the end of a word - code [cat] -cat [cat], meadow [bow] - bow [bow]; 2) before voiced and voiceless consonants - wedding [svad'b] -pastba [paz'd'ba], buckle [pr'*ashk] - pawn [p'eshk], etc. In these positions, voiced and voiceless consonants are not opposed: at the end of the word and before voiceless consonants a noisy voiceless is pronounced, and before voiced consonants a noisy voiced is pronounced.

Strong positions for consonants paired in hardness and softness are: 1) position before front vowels: circle - hook, small - crumpled, nose - carried; 2) position at the end of the word: raft - flesh, throne - touch.

The weakest position in terms of hardness and softness is occupied by consonants:

1) before front vowels - hay, blue, hand (cf. hand);

2) before consonants - shepherd - graze [graze], tackle - remove [sѴ at’].

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§ 4. Strong and weak positions of consonant sounds in the stream of speech

relevant scientific sources:

• Answers to the exam in modern Russian language

  | Answers for the test/exam| 2016 | Russia | docx | 0.25 MB

A strong position differs from a weak position as follows:

If we are talking about vowels, then when they are stressed, then this is a strong position. And when there is no accent, it is weak.

But with consonants the matter is more complicated.

Strong The position is considered if there is a vowel after the consonant.

And if after there is a sonorant consonant or the letter B.

Weak The position is considered if the consonant is at the end of the word or before a voiced consonant or before a voiceless one.

Here is a table with examples:



The strong position of vowels and consonants is the moment when sounds can be distinguished.

A weak position of vowels and consonants is when the sounds are not entirely distinguishable.

Let's say the sound can be deafening. Sometimes, in this situation, mistakes occur in words, because it is not entirely clear which letter needs to be written.

Here's a short summary of the positions of sounds in the tables:





The location of a sound in a word, its location relative to the beginning or end of the word, as well as relative to other sounds, is called position. Depending on the degree of sound audibility in a particular position, its weak and strong positions are distinguished. Both vowels and consonants can be in a weak or strong position.



A sound position is called strong when it cannot be confused with another sound and is clearly pronounced. For vowel sounds, the strong position is their position under stress, and in this way, by placing a vowel under stress, it is checked for correct spelling. Accordingly, the weak position for vowels will be their unstressed position in the word. Consonant sounds are not stressed, but there are also options for them when the pronunciation of the consonant is distinct - before a vowel, before a sonar, and before a consonant V. On the contrary, a weak position for consonants is their location at the end of a word or before a sound opposite in voicing.

Each sound has its own strengths and weaknesses.

A sound is considered to be in a strong position when we clearly hear it and we have no doubts about the writing of this letter.

A sound is considered to be in a weak position when we have doubts about which letter is heard and written.

Table of strengths and weaknesses of vowels and consonants:



A strong vowel position is a position under stress, where the sound does not require checking when writing, since it is heard clearly.

A weak vowel position is a position that is not under stress, where the sound requires checking when writing, since it is not heard clearly.

As for consonant sounds, the strong positions for them are:

1. before vowels
2. before sonorants
3. before in and in.

Sound position in phonetics, the position of a sound in a vocabulary unit is called:

• before vowel/consonant;
• at the end, as well as in the middle or beginning of lexemes and their forms;
• under stress or in the absence of it (for vowel sounds).

These positions are divided into two categories:

Strong we call the one sound in which can be heard clearly and is indicated by its letter:

• lady lady; smooth even; intellectual intellectual;
• gold z, o, l, t; solo s, o, l, n; speck p, a, t, n, k;

Weak one where the sound is indicated by a foreign letter, where the spelling is often in doubt and therefore requires verification or the application of another rule that determines its choice ( position (position) of sound non-discrimination) plant trees (graze trees):

• in the 1st syllables of both vocabulary units, the sounds A, I are indicated by foreign letters (O, E), therefore in the 1st case we need to remember about the uniform spelling of the prefix, in the 2nd word we need to find a single-root lexeme in order to check the stress of the root vowel: tree ;
• in the 2nd syllable (word 1st) the sound A is indicated by its own letter, (A), but its position is weak (unstressed), therefore the choice of A also needs to be proven, for which we also check: landing.

Thus, the nature of the position of vowel sounds is closely related to accent (stress).

Any vowel sound that is under stress has a strong position:

• provide provide;
• terem terem;
• hawk hawk

Unstressed vowels have a weak position, for example:

• frost frost;
• lazy lazy;
• pedestrian squeaks.

Quantitative as well as qualitative changes in the sound of a vowel, directly related to stress (with unstressed position), are called reduction.

If an unstressed sound is pronounced only shorter than a stressed one, but does not change its quality (for example, U in the lexemes leaving, leaving), we talk about the presence reduction of quantitative, and the further the unstressed vowel is from the stressed one (pre-stressed and post-stressed positions: 1st, 2nd, 3rd), the less long it is.



If the vowel also changes its quality (for example, AND in the lexeme tarnish on the letter is indicated by the letter I), we say that, in addition to quantitative, he was also subjected to reduction of qualitative. Let's look at sounds in place of letters as an example ABOUT in three related lexemes:

• ear 1st letter O the sound O and means (strong position), the 2nd O has a shorter sound, in universities it is customary to denote it with the symbol Ъ (at school they use the symbol A; the 1st post-stressed position is weak);
• ears of corn 1st O indicates the sound (at school they also use the symbol A; the 1st pre-stress position is weak), it is shorter in sound than A, but longer than Ъ;
• ear the 1st letter O the sound Ъ already known to us means (position 2nd pre-stress weak); in the 1st position, pre-stressed (2nd syllable), also weak, with the same letter O indicating the sound.

For clarity I made this table:



Strength/weakness of the position of consonant sounds depends on factors such as:

• type of sounds following them (vowel / consonant);
• the place occupied by a sound in a vocabulary unit (beginning, middle, end);
• another consonant occupying a postposition in relation to the 1st (voiceless / voiced, soft / hard, noisy / sonorant).

Presence of a vowel sound, located immediately after the consonant, contributes to the clear pronunciation of the first, therefore, will create a strong position for the consenter:

• there would be dust n;
• kindergarten s, d gray-haired s, d;
• lived and sewed w.

For paired voiced/voiceless consonants strong are the positions before vowels:

• doka d,k;
• toga t,g.

and before consonants:

• noisy in, in (utensils t two hundred d);
• sonorous (zmot z shmat sh),

weak or

• at the end of lexemes and their forms (pillar n pillar n; meadow k bow k);
• at the beginning, as well as at the end of vocabulary units before noisy ones, except in, in (building z do z, fairy tale with mask with).

For paired hard/soft consonants, strong We call these positions:

• before vowels (soap m milo m);
• at the end of lexemes and their word forms (sel l sel l; elm z vyaz z);
• before hard consonants: (asphalt s before f; mowing s before b),

A weak

• before soft consonants (steppe s in preposition to t, umbrella n before t).

Weak positions consonant sounds are associated with the phenomenon of phonetic assimilation(likening the consonants in front to those behind). In school practice the term assimilation, as a rule, is replaced by expressions:

• deafening of voiced consonants before voiceless ones;
• voicing of voiceless consonants before voiced ones;
• softening of hard consonants before soft ones.

Examples:

• T-shirt, mowing (vocalization: d before b and z before b);
• fairy tale, shop (stun: s and f before k);
• bow, gift (softening: n and s before t).

Positions of consonant sounds I presented it in the following table:



A weak position of vowels and consonants is a position where the sounds are indistinguishable. for example, a voiced consonant at the end of a word is deafened, and doubt arises whether we are writing the letter correctly. And then you need to remember the rule for deafness - voicedness.

A position is called strong if sounds are distinguished from others.

It's best to explain with examples.







The teacher once taught us this: say any word sharply and rudely. They said, each to his own. And now you need to say which letter you all heard loudly and sharply, that one will stand in a strong position, and the rest, which were not audible, will be in weak positions.

Strong and weak vowel positions

Vowel position under stress called STRONG.

In this position, all six vowel sounds are distinguished (mal - mor - mir - mUL - mer - myl).

IN strong vowel positions are pronounced with the greatest force, very clearly and do not require verification.

Vowel position in unstressed syllables - this WEAK position.

In this position, instead of some vowels in the same part of the word, other vowels are pronounced, for example, vada and water, rika and rivers, place and mista, row and ridy.

The pronunciation of vowel sounds in a weak position depends on which syllable in relation to percussion syllable they are located.

In the first pre-stressed syllable after solid consonant vowels A And O are pronounced the same, that is, they coincide in one sound a, for example, sada, gara. Akanye is considered the Russian literary pronunciation.

Vowel sounds A And e after soft consonants in the first pre-stressed syllable are pronounced as a sound close to i (rather, sounds with an overtone e).

For example, let's compare the pronunciation of words nickel And rooster: pI(e)so, pI(e)tuh.

Hiccups are considered normative in the Russian language.

In all other pre-stressed syllables and post-stressed vowels ah, oh sound even weaker and unclear.

Weak vowel position a, o, e after the hissing and C is expressed somewhat differently.

I'll give just one example. After solid f, w, c before soft consonants instead A usually sounds s with an overtone uh: jacket => zhy(e)ket, hut => shy(e)lash, thirty => three(e)ty.

In some cases, in a weak position during rapid pronunciation, vowels may fall out, for example, on Volochka.

Strong and weak positions of consonants

The position in which the consonant sound does not change is called strong.

For consonants, this is the location of the consonant before:

VOWELS: doc - current, bow - hatch, race - cassock, dear - soap;

SONORAL: elephant - clone, sheaf - chills, down - down, grass - firewood;

consonant IN: match, create.

WEAK position is a position in which the consonants are not opposed in terms of voicedness-voicelessness and hardness-softness.

Weak is the position:

a) at the end of a word (voiced and voiceless consonants are pronounced the same way here - dull): raft - fruit, pond - twig, side - god, haystack - drain;

b) before voiced ones (voiceless ones are voiced): ask - request (s => z)

and before the deaf (voiced ones are deafened): sharp - sharp, lows - low (z => s);

Often the position before soft ones, as well as before lt;j>, turns out to be weak for consonants paired with hardness and softness. In this position, the consonant is pronounced softly, for example: snow, bomb, blizzard.

By hardness/softness

Both phonemes, paired on the basis of hardness/softness, can appear in a strong position, preserving the ability to distinguish meaning. For example, in position before a vowel phoneme:<лу́к> - <л’у́к>. It should be noted that the position in front is also strong in hardness/softness.<е>, because In this position, both soft and hard phonemes can appear in root morphemes, for example:<ме́>tr (teacher, mentor) -<м’е́>tr. In the position of the absolute end of a word, where voiceless/voiced phonemes are not distinguished, both hard and soft phonemes, paired according to this characteristic, can appear, for example: cro<фı>-kro<ф’ı>. Before the back-lingual phoneme, front-lingual and labial phonemes that have pairs of hardness/softness retain their distinctive ability, for example: Se<рг’>ey - behold<р’г’>e; ple<т 1 к>a – sya<т’ı-к>A; co<пı к>a - sy<п’ıк>A.

In a weak position in terms of hardness/softness, the opposition of phonemes on this basis is neutralized, the phonemes lose their distinctive ability. For example, in a position in front of a dental or palatodental anterior lingual phoneme, only a hard labial phoneme can appear:<п 2 р’>ivet; O<п 2 р>os. In the position in front of the hard anterior lingual phoneme, only hard dental phonemes are realized:<з 2 на́л> - <с 2 -на́м’и>. In this position, there is no distinction between hard and soft anterior linguals.

Information about the strong and weak positions of consonant phonemes, paired on the basis of hardness/softness, can be presented in the form of a table:

Strong positions in hardness/softness	Weak positions in terms of hardness/softness
1. Before a vowel phoneme, including before a phoneme<е> <да́>ma -<д’а́>da;<со́>To -<с’о́>To; inter<не́>T -<н’е́>T	1. Position of any consonant phoneme before the phoneme within one morpheme (only soft consonant phonemes can appear in this position):<р’jа´н αı>
2. At the absolute end of the word plo<т 1 >- bad<т’ 1 >; mo<л>- mo<л’>	2. Labial phonemes before the front lingual ones (only hard labial ones can appear)<п 2 р>avo;<п 2 р’>ate
3. Front-lingual phonemes before back-lingual stems<нк>a - Ste<н’к>A; wa<рк>a - Va<р’- к>A	3. Forelingual dental phonemes before dental and palatodental ones (only soft allophones of phonemes appear before soft phonemes, only hard allophones appear before hard phonemes):<з 2 л’и́т’>; < с 2 л’и́т’>; <з 2 ло́j>; <с 2 ло́j>. Exception: phonemes<л> - <л’>; <н> - <н’>(see: “Strong positions on hardness/softness”, No. 6)
4. Labial phonemes before back-lingual ones<п 1 к>a - sy<п’ 1 -к>A; hundred<ф 1 к>a - a hundred<ф’ 1 -к>A	4. Palatodental<р> - <р’>before labiodental and anterior lingual (only solid allophones of phonemes can appear):<р 2 в’о́т 1 >; <р 2 ва́л>
5. Forelingual phonemes before labial phonemes<см>oh - oh<с’м>Ouch; That<рб>a-gu<р’б>A	5. Labial consonant phonemes before labials:<р’и́ф 2 мα 1 >(Im.p.);<р’и́ф 2 м’α 1 >(D.p., Pr.p.)
6. Phonemes<л>And<л’>before any consonant phoneme except co<лб>a - pa<л’б>A; By<лк>a-po<л’к>A; By<лн>y - in<л’н>th	6. Back-lingual phonemes before any consonant phoneme:<к 2 ну́т 1 >, <мок 2 н’ α 1 т 1 >
7. Phonemes<н>And<н’>before phonemes<ж>And<ш>pla<нш>et - me<н’ш>e; ma<нж>et - de<н’ж>ata

Note: For more information about the weak positions of consonants in terms of hardness/softness, see: Avanesov R.I. Phonetics of the modern Russian literary language. M., 1956, p. 175-182.

A phoneme can be in a strong position simultaneously in terms of deafness/voice and hardness/softness. This position is called absolutely strong, for example, the position before a vowel phoneme:<до́>m -<то́>m;<до́>m - i<д’о́>m. There are positions in which the deafness/voiceness of paired phonemes differs, but the hardness/softness does not differ, for example:<с 2 р>azu -<з 2 р>basics. In certain positions, the phoneme retains the ability to differentiate from paired ones in terms of hardness/softness, but appears in a weak position in terms of deafness/voice, for example, in the position of the absolute end of a word: kro<ф ı >- cro<ф’ ı >, shka<ф ı >- ver<ф’ ı >. Absolutely weak phonemes appear in positions in which oppositions both in deafness/voice and in hardness/softness are lost. For example, noisy anterior lingual dental ones in position in front of noisy anterior lingual dental and palatodental ones do not differ from their paired ones in deafness/voice and in hardness/softness of phonemes:<с 3 т>He. Phoneme<с 3 >is in an absolutely weak position, because only a noisy voiceless consonant can be preceded by a noisy voiceless consonant, and only a hard dental consonant is used in front of a hard dental consonant as part of the root, i.e. no discrimination<с>- <з>; <с> - <с’>.

Subject of graphics as a scientific discipline

Graphics (from the Greek grapho - I write) is a branch of the science of language that studies descriptive signs (graphic means) and the relationship between letters and sounds (phonemes). Graphic means include: letters, punctuation, space between words, indentation (paragraph), apostrophe, accent mark and some other signs. However, the main graphic means of the Russian language are letters.

Russian language 2nd grade

(D.B. Elkonin-V.V. Davydov system)

Teacher of the Votkinsk Lyceum: Mashlakova S.N.

Subject. Strong and weak positions of consonants. Positions of consonants, paired according to voicedness and voicelessness, before sonorants.

Lesson stage: basic.

The purpose of this entire section:formation of spelling action at the stage of setting spelling tasks.

Learning task: compiling a table of strong and weak positions of consonant sounds. A letter with omitted spellings of weak consonant positions.

Lesson objectives:

1) educational– developing the ability to identify the position of consonants, paired in terms of voicedness and voicelessness, before sonorous ones;

2) developing – work to improve evaluative independence and reflection;

3) educational– fostering a love for nature and a caring attitude towards it; culture of educational dialogue.

Lesson objectives:

1. practice the ability to find strong and weak positions of consonant sounds, paired according to their voicedness and deafness;

2. identify the position of consonants, paired in voiced-voicelessness, before sonorants;

3. continue work to improve evaluative independence;

4. foster a culture of educational dialogue;

5. instill a love for nature and respect for it.

Lesson type: solving private educational problems.

UD forms: frontal, steam room, group.

Equipment: notebooks, textbook “Russian language”, part 1, S.V. Lomakovich, L.I. Timchenko, “Workbook on the Russian language” on a printed basis, table “Characteristics of sounds”, table “Strong and weak positions of consonants”, cards for group work, illustrations for E. Uspensky’s poem “Wild Nature” , bell, poster with a formula for presenting group decisions, poster for reflection, envelopes with colored circles for reflection, markers, tables for relieving visual fatigue.

During the classes.

I. Creating a learning situation.
	Working with tables to relieve visual fatigue.	Psychological and pedagogical characteristics of the lesson.
	Task 1. Org. moment. Check it out, buddy. Are you ready to start the lesson? Is everything alright: A book, pen and notebook? Is everyone sitting correctly? Is everyone watching carefully? Guys, open your notebooks and place them at an angle. We look at the board, write down the number and the words “Cool work.” We put emphasis and underline the spelling of weak positions. Open the textbook p.90 No.85. You see a poem by E. Uspensky. I asked the girls to learn it in advance and, since they are studying at an art school, to draw illustrations. Let's listen to them. Do you have “wildlife” at home? Who will tell about this? Why do people so want to have “wildlife” at home? What does the word “nature” even mean? What important task faces modern man? The teacher clarifies the conclusion:we must protect nature. Let's turn to the textbook and complete the task. Read the assignment. Look at the table. How do you understand what a weak position of sounds is? Why is it so important to know when a sound is in a weak position? (To write without errors). So, knowing this secret, you will be able to write without errors? Raise your hand, who can do this? Amazing! Let's test ourselves. We will complete the task ourselves. Who wants to do the task on the board? Anyone who knows how to do it can get to work. If anyone needs help, raise your hand and I will help. Examination. – Let’s check the words to the first scheme. Who agrees? Who has it differently? Let's read the words to the second diagram. Who has a different opinion? And the words for the third diagram. Which word had to be written down twice? Why? Conclusion: have we learned to find weak positions of consonant sounds? Well done!	Establishing interpersonal contact between children and teacher. Motivation for cognitive interest Working with the textbook. Individual homework. Realization of educational goals. The students formulate the conclusion. Evaluation-praise. The student reads aloud. Table “Strong and weak positions of consonant sounds.” Creating a situation of success. Self-esteem. Differentiation. Individual work with a student. Evaluation-praise.
	II. Setting a learning task.
	Task 2. – In E. Uspensky’s poem there is the word “multi-colored”. The paired “z” comes before the voiced one and it is also voiced. But the paired “t” also comes before the voiced one. Why doesn't he call? What problem might we face?(Consonants may have other strong and weak positions) What do we need to learn in class today?(Be able to find them) Conclusion: Indeed, we may encounter words with other strong and weak consonant positions; we need to learn to find them. What needs to be done for this? (Observe the sounds). Physical exercise.	Card on the board. Students formulate the topic and purpose of the lesson. The topic of the lesson and purpose are clarified by the teacher. The teacher puts a question mark on the board.
	III. Analysis of the conditions for solving the problem.
	Task 3. - Let's do it in textbook No. 86. Let's read the task. Guys, there are a lot of words, but we have little time left. Think about how we can speed up our work? (Work in pairs). Draw rulers in the margins and write the letters “P” and “K.” Don't forget to check with the green pencil. We observe the noise level when working in pairs. Which pairs want to complete the task on the board? Examination. - Before what consonants are the first consonants pronounced? Why then don’t the deaf voice themselves? What is special about loud neighbors? (They are not paired). They are called sonorous , which means sonorous. They are more sonorous than other voiced consonants. We see that the paired sounds in front of them are different. And this means that the position before sonorants will be what? (Strong) How can we record what we have learned on a diagram? Have we answered the question asked? Why do we need to know this? (To write without errors). Well done!	Work in pairs. Peer review. [n] [l] [m] [r] [th] Table “Characteristics of sounds” Model construction. Evaluation-praise.
	IV. Testing the found method.
	Task 4. – Guys,please tell me how to check whether students understand what weak and strong positions of consonants are? (You have to complete the tasks). Is it easy to do alone? Maybe you need some advice? - Form groups. I give you cards. Listen to the task: consonants paired in voiced-voicelessness stand before paired voiced consonants. What is this position? (Weak). Trace this consonant position on your cards with a marker. Be careful. Think about who will be responsible. Examination. – A group representative comes to the board with a card and answers, following the answer rules. All cards are posted on the board. Pay attention to the words [ringing], [your]. Why is the voiceless [s] not voiced before the voiced [v]? Maybe there is some kind of “secret” again? We'll talk about this in the next lesson.	Group work. The teacher writes a diagram on the board. Start and end by sound bell Formula table. P – “we believe.” O – “because”. Pr – “for example.” S – “therefore.” Statement of the problem for the next lesson.
	V. Final reflection.
	What question did we answer in class? (Do consonants have strong and weak positions). What consonant position did we learn today? (Strong).

Russian language is a difficult subject. We write words completely differently from how they are actually pronounced. In speech, the same phonemes manifest themselves in different sound forms. Compare, for example, the words “honey” - [m"ot] and "honey" - [m"idok]. It all depends on whether phonemes occupy strong positions or weak positions within a word. Let's talk about this in more detail.

Speech is a continuous stream of phonemes in which the pronunciation of a sound is largely determined by its place in the word, neighboring vowels and consonants. IN weak position articulation undergoes significant changes. Phonemes lose some of their characteristics and begin to appear in other variants. For example, [o] in an unstressed position begins to sound like [a]: [vada], [sava]. The final [g] is pronounced like [k]: [druk], [kruk]. It is in such places that we make mistakes in writing.

IN strong position the phoneme, on the contrary, is heard clearly and stands in its basic form. It does not depend on its position in a word; its quality is not affected by neighboring sounds. This is, for example, the phoneme [o] in the words “water”, “owl”. Or the sound [g] in the words “to a friend”, “around”.

Morphological principle of spelling

Why does an ordinary person, far from linguistics, need to know the strong and weak positions of phonemes? The fact is that the spelling of 90% of Russian words is regulated by the so-called morphological principle. According to him, we should not take into account phonetic alternations when we pick up a pen or type text on a keyboard. Roots, suffixes, prefixes, endings are always written the same way. Reduction of vowels, softening of consonants before certain sounds, their voicing or deafening are not taken into account.

From this follows the conclusion: when writing, you cannot rely on hearing. Only sounds in strong positions are written as they are heard. All others need to be verified. Having determined that the phoneme is in a weak position, we begin to select a test word with the same morpheme. For example, tooth - dental, linden - pine, hike - train, to the lamp - to the water. In the test word, the phoneme must be in a strong position, and be in the same morpheme. Otherwise you might make a mistake.

Strong and weak positions of vowel sounds

Already in elementary school, children know: the sound under stress is heard for a long time, clearly and does not need to be checked. We can safely write the words “catfish”, “sam” in the notebook. This is a strong vowel position.

The unstressed position is a completely different matter. Such a vowel is in a weak position; we pronounce it briefly, with less force, indistinctly. Compare the words "soma" and "sama". They sound almost the same. In order not to make mistakes when writing them, schoolchildren are taught to select test words.

The Russian language is characterized by:

• “akanie”, when unstressed [a] and [o] are pronounced the same after hard consonants (for example, the words “at home”, “dala”);
• “hiccup”, in which unstressed [a] and [e] are indistinguishable after soft consonants (for example, in the words “ball” and “sword”).

The vowels [i], [u] and [s] in a weak position are pronounced shorter, but do not change their quality sound. However, it is better to exercise caution here too. Unstressed [i], for example, can easily be confused with the phonemes [a] and [e] that come after soft consonants.

Positions of consonants: voiceless and voiced

Consonant sounds form pairs according to such characteristics as “voiceless-voiced” and “hard-soft”. Accordingly, strong and weak positions of consonants are also determined by these two characteristics.

A strong position on the basis of “voiceless-voiced” for consonants is the position:

• before a vowel: tom-house, fence-cathedral;
• before sonorants: firewood - grass, layer - evil;
• before the letter "v": the creator is the palace.

In the listed cases, the consonants are heard clearly and do not require verification. It is hardly possible to make a mistake in spellings that do not have a pair for deafness. These include [l], [l"], [n], [n"], [r], [r"], [m], [m"], [th"]. Phonemes [x], [ ts], [x"], [sch"] and [ch"], on the contrary, do not have a voiced paired sound. They can occupy different positions in words, maintaining their basic characteristics and not coinciding with other consonants during pronunciation.

When can consonants be voiced or devoiced?

Now we will learn to distinguish between strong positions and weak positions of paired phonemes based on the voiced-voicedness of phonemes. In what cases are we at risk of making a mistake in writing? This position:

• at the end of a word, where both voiced and voiceless phonemes coincide in their sound: eye - voice, oak - dull, bough - meadow;
• before a paired voiced sound, when the adjacent consonant is also pronounced voiced: shave - [zb]rit, give - o[dd]at;
• before a voiceless consonant, when the adjacent sound is deafened: spoon - lo[shk]a, entrance - [fh]od.

To avoid mistakes, we must understand in which morpheme the questionable sound is located. Then find a test word where the required phoneme is in a strong position. So that this does not take much time, you need training. Let's select test words for the examples given above: eye - eyes, voice - glasa, oak - oak, stupid - stupid, bough - bough, meadow - meadows; shave - fold, give - drive away; spoon - apply, entrance - left.

Consonant positions: hardness and softness

The time has come to consider the strong and weak positions of consonant sounds on such a basis as “hard-soft”. There are many dangers awaiting us here. The morphological principle does not always save. For example, the sounds [zh] and [sh] are always hard, but we know that in some cases a soft sign is written after them (rye, hear). After the hard [ts] there can be the letter “y” (chicken) or “i” (circus).

The sounds [ch"] and [sch"] are always pronounced softly, but from the first grade we remember the spelling of the syllables "cha-sha" and "chu-schu". There is another principle at work here, called traditional or historical. Only a clear knowledge of the rules of the Russian language will save you from making mistakes.

Nevertheless, let's return to theory. In what case do consonants that have a pair of hardness and softness do not change their qualitative characteristics? This position:

• before a vowel: [mal] - [m "al", [ox] - [v "ol", [bow] - [l "uk", [life"] - [b "it"];
• at the end of the word: [kon] - [kon"], [brother] - [brother"];
• absolutely any for phonemes [l], [l"]: vo[l]a - vo[l"n]a, po[l"z]a - po[l]at;
• before back-lingual [g], [k], [x], [g"], [k"], [x"] and hard labial [b], [m], [n] for front-lingual sounds: go [rk] a - go[r"k]o, i[zb]a - re[z"b]a;
• before hard teeth [s], [z], [ts], [d], [t], [l], [n] for teeth: ko[ns]ky - yu[n"s]ky;
• before hard front-linguals [s], [z], [t], [d], [ts], [l], [r], [n], [sh], [z] for sonorant front-linguals: jan [rs] cue - September[r"s]kiy, ma[nzh]eta - de[n"zh]ata.

Weak positions according to the characteristic "softness - hardness"

There are positions in which hard consonants soften under the influence of neighboring sounds. They are considered weak. This position:

• Before [th"]: raven - vor[n"y"o]. The exception is the consonants at the end of the prefix before [th"]: [vy"est] - entry.
• Before soft dental sounds for sounds [c], [n], [z]: together [s"t"]e, [z"d"]es.
• Before the phonemes [ch"] and [sch"] for the sound [n]: drum [n"sch"]ik, roll [n"ch"]ik.

In general, it is very difficult to distinguish between strong positions and weak positions on the basis of “hard-soft consonant”. The fact is that it is not possible to select examples for all cases. So, in the Russian language before [n] we find only solid [m]: compote, shampoo, etc. Not a single word has the sound [m"] in this position. Consequently, we cannot be completely sure whether it is realized here phoneme [m] or [m"].

Absolute positions for consonants

Let's summarize. Everything is clear with vowel sounds. If they are stressed, the position is considered strong. If the stress falls on another phoneme in the word, then the position is weak. It's more complicated with consonants.

For example, in the word “tooth” the sound at the end is deafened. The position on the basis of “voice-voicelessness” will be weak. But it is also strong on the soft-hard scale. When the weak positions for both characteristics coincide, the phoneme is considered absolutely weak. It realizes itself in various variations and requires the use of spelling rules.

It happens that a consonant is in a strong position both according to the “voiced-voiceless” characteristic and according to the “soft-hard” characteristic. This is often observed in the position before a vowel sound. This position is called absolutely strong.

Knowing the strong positions and weak positions of phonemes is necessary for every person who wants to write correctly. This will allow you to quickly identify the “mistaken” place in the word and remember the corresponding rule.